125 is the magic number

Northville celebrates its age

Northville celebrates its age

June 14, 2007|By Gretchen Mayer, American News Writer

The logo for Northville states, "A small town with big fun." “Small,” it is. The little town located 23 miles south of Aberdeen boasts only 124 residents. Big fun? That remains to be seen but if it's up to Roylene Heidenreich, Kris Boekelheide and Janette Smith, there will definitely be big fun this weekend. You see, Northville is celebrating its 125th anniversary. But first a bit of history. In 1881 when the Chicago and Northwestern Railway arrived at the northern-most point on the rail line, the village that popped up was named Northville. The town reached its peak population in 1910 with 392 residents. "During the boom period, Northville counted a flour mill, two barber shops, a millinery shop, a band, a livery stable, farm implement dealers, a harness shop, meat market, two lumber yards, dentists, lawyers, photographer, rug weaver, shoe repair shop, undertaker and newspaper among it business establishments," states the Web site. Plans for the anniversary celebration began last August. Fundraising events included a tour of homes, raffle sales, a penny board, a Texas Hold'em tournament and memorabilia sales. The celebration will launch Friday night with the opening of the time capsule buried 25 years ago, followed by a mower poker run. Most of the events on Saturday will be centered near the NCA (Northville Community Association) building at 306 W. Elm St. You can't miss it - it's the big, two-story brick building that used to be a school. That's where the big tent will be pitched and the flag ceremony will take place. For more information, visit the Web site at www.northvillesd.com. Listed below is the schedule of events FRIDAY 6:30 p.m., Opening of the Time Capsule followed by a mower poker run. SATURDAY 7:30 a.m., registration for the 5K Run/Walk, which begins at 8 a.m. 9:15 a.m., Flag raising ceremony. 10:30 a.m., Parade. Noon, Horse Poker Run. Noon-5 p.m., Car show, kids' games, free pony rides, dunk tank, barrel train. 1 p.m., Tractor pull, Legion ball game. 3:30 p.m., Bingo. 5 p.m., Supper and CCR Gospel Trio. 6:30 p.m. Musical entertainment by the Brentford Boys. 8 p.m., Musical entertainment by Take Two. 9:30 p.m., Musical entertainment and dance with Peter Franck. Tee shirt and memorabilia sales, food vendors, historical artifacts and Time Capsule displays will go on all day.